CompTIA to Launch IT Pro Association to Help Foster Skilled Workforce

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Jan. 9, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Expanding significantly its activity to help foster an IT workforce that meets the technology sector's unmet job-skill needs, CompTIA, the world's leading technology association, today announced that it will launch its first IT professional association.   

CompTIA's new association, to be officially activated this spring, will offer a multifaceted suite of member benefits for IT professionals of all types – explicitly designed to help facilitate the success of IT pros throughout their careers: a "resume-to-retirement" employment-support strategy. 

"This new CompTIA association is only the latest, and next logical, step on our ongoing journey of helping create a skilled and proficient workforce," said CompTIA CEO Todd Thibodeaux.  CompTIA has issued over two million vendor-neutral IT certifications to technology professionals worldwide, provides comprehensive training and continuing education programs, and, through its Foundation, is supporting STEM education for underserved youth and adults, among other workforce activities.

CompTIA's new IT pro association will not only recruit new IT professionals for membership, but enlist its many certification and continuing education alumni to also join and contribute to its success.  "They're our biggest asset, and we'll fully engage them to help grow and enrich this new association," explained CompTIA Executive Vice President, Industry Relations, Nancy Hammervik.  "This will be a member-led, member-empowering association."   

CompTIA Acquires the Association of Information Technology Professionals

To bolster its new organization, CompTIA also announced its acquisition of the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP).  Founded in 1951, AITP has advanced the IT profession through professional development, support of IT education, national IT policies, and robust student-focused activity.  "AITP, with its deep historical roots and established networks, will help us build a solid foundation for success for our new professional association," said Thibodeaux.

Pathways to Career Success:  Member Benefits of New CompTIA Pro Association

Among membership benefits, CompTIA's new professional association will provide:

• Skills: significant discounts on CompTIA's certification and continuing education programs.
• Knowledge: access to the extensive Skillsoft library, addressing a wide range of management and networking topics.
• Career Advancement: an exclusive, customized career portal that offers customizable resume building, facilitates specialized employment searches and provides a career path roadmap.
• Experience: participation in CompTIA's AskIT program, for direct work experience.
• Networking: opportunities to connect with peers online and face-to-face.

"These impressive member benefits will help open pathways to career success," said CompTIA's Hammervik.

"Self-Evident Need" for IT Pro Association

"There's a self-evident need for us to establish an IT pro association," explained CompTIA's Thibodeaux.   He noted that the IT services sector is already unable to fill 15 percent of vacant positions, and that this problem is projected to only worsen when millions of IT workers retire in the next eight years.  

"Ultimately, it's not the things of IT, but the people in IT, that drive our industry's success," said Thibodeaux.  "And our overarching priority in growing this new association will be to help IT professionals start or restart careers that can realize their ambitions and fulfill their dreams -- as they continue to help contribute to our economic growth and security."

CompTIA: Building the Foundation for Technology's Future
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is the world's leading technology association, with approximately 2,000 member companies, 3,000 academic and training partners, over 100,000 registered users and more than two million IT certifications issued.  CompTIA's unparalleled range of programs foster workforce skills development and generate critical knowledge and insight –  building the foundation for technology's future.  Visit CompTIA online, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. 

Contact:
Marc Barilov
CompTIA
630-678-8415
[email protected]

SOURCE CompTIA